The Cat Lie
by SuperNatural1985
Summary: Little Nicky had multiple tricks up his sleeve to get out of going to bed to Antonio's consternation- One Shot


I own nothing except some original characters I sometimes bring in. Kelley Armstrong owns The Otherworld and all the wonderful information there.

*I want to thank SheWolf13 for her excellent editing skills and making this story 100% better. I also want to say please go check out her story **Unbroken**. It is an excellent story and Max will be making background appearances in it as well. If you want to see more Max and meet some amazing new characters please read her awesome stuff.

The Cat Lie

"I need...," Nicky said and as he spoke he fingered the hem of his pyjama shirt nervously. Antonio stood with his arms crossed, looking at the small boy with a raised eyebrow, "A glass of water," Nicky finally finished. With chocolate brown eyes full of pleading, he looked at his father. He could have been the God damned kid on the commercial for children in need of help, he looked so pathetic. Antonio was tempted to laugh at his son's expression, but he kept his face and shook his head instead.

"Nicky, you can't have water because you wet the bed at night, you know that," Antonio told him. Nicky's shoulders slumped as he raced to think up a response that would get him what he wanted. Suddenly, he looked up, determination shining in his eyes as he figured out the answer. Antonio laughed inwardly and waited patiently for his son to get on with whatever elaborate story he was about to tell him.

"No, daddy. That wasn't me," Nicky said, looking into his father's face and trying to convey sadness and devastation. Again, Antonio wanted to laugh, but he kept it in, knowing it would not help the situation. "It was the cat," Nicky said. At that Antonio's eyebrows shot up in surprise. Cat? What cat? If they had a cat, it would have been eaten a long time ago by him or his father Dominic who was the Alpha. Werewolves and cats, or animals in general, don't generally live peacefully together because they just make such good snack food.

"We don't have a cat, Nicholas, and the stain on your bed was the size of a pizza. No cat could do that," Antonio said now, using the boy's full name to convey he was not happy with the lie. Antonio's wolf grumbled about him not reprimanding the boy for it, but he ignored him. He knew how to raise his son and the wolf could butt out for now.

"It was the neighbour's cat, daddy, he's as big as a horse and he came in and peed all over the bed and I said 'stop that', but he didn't," Nicky whined in a small voice. Ok, this was too funny, but as the parent Antonio knew he could not laugh. He would tell Jeremy and laugh about it later, but to give into Nicky when he was clearly lying, even if it was funny, would be bad parenting.

"Nicholas Antonio, I don't appreciate the lie. Tell me the truth," Antonio said in a hard voice. Antonio then got down one knee and crouched in front of the small child, setting a hand on his shoulder as the tears rolled down Nicky's face. Standing over him before had been an intimidation tactic designed to get Nicky to obey him faster, but it obviously was not working so instead he got to the boy's level. Antonio had read so many parenting books the information was coming out his ears. He had to be both mother and father to Nicky so he tried his best. If Dominic would stop interfering and insisting he was too young, he might get somewhere. Antonio was 20 and his father still considered him a child himself. He was still a pup in the pack, but he was also a pack protector so he would hopefully lose the pup title soon.

"It...w...was...a cat," Nick sniffed as more tears came. Antonio growled at this and Nicky went wide eyed. He didn't like making his daddy's wolf growl. He was quite scary sometimes. Antonio then sighed and wiped the tears from Nicky's face, giving himself a moment to calm before speaking.

"Go to bed, Nicholas, no water," Antonio said. Nicky's shoulders slumped again as he looked into his father's eyes with a pitiful expression. Antonio sighed and picked the feather light boy up, setting him on his hip. He then brought him to bed and pulled his space comforter back, settling the boy in. He wiped the tears from his face and looked into his deep brown eyes one more time. His own eyes stared back at him. "I bambini vanno a dormire," he whispered, telling him to go to sleep.

It was hard for Antonio to leave the distraught boy alone, but he knew it was for the best. His instinct, as a father and strong werewolf, was to protect and love. He wanted nothing more than to go and cuddle his son and give him gallons of water, but he couldn't. He was trying to prove to his father that he could do this and do it right. That meant that while he could be playful and coddle him, he also needed to b strict with him too.

Antonio sighed and walked to his room. He pulled off his shirt and pants and was about to work on his socks when Nicky screamed from down the hall. Antonio jerked up until he heard Nicky screaming words and not out of fear. "Daddy, I want water!" he yelled. Immediately, Antonio and his wolf grew frustrated and angry at the command. He would have to put the pup in his place soon.

"Nicky, if you don't go to sleep, I am going to come in there and you'll have quite a sore butt if I do," Antonio called. Standing still, he waited for the reply. Hopefully, there wouldn't be one and he could avoid going in and being the disciplinarian. He hated disciplining his son. It was the worst part of being a parent, but he knew he had to do it.

"When you come," Nicky bellowed. Antonio sighed and rose then to go and do what he needed to do. "Bring water," he yelled. Suddenly, before Antonio could stop it, a laugh bellowed up from him. His booming chortle echoed around the room and bounced down the hall. For a moment, Nicky was silent and then he laughed as well. Antonio sighed. Ok, one point to the kid then. Let him have his damned water.

"Alright, get some water from the washroom, you sneaky little pup," Antonio called. He heard Nicky bounce from bed then and heard the creek of his door. The boy appeared in race car pyjamas and gave him a quick grin from down the hall before racing the bathroom. He swore that kid would be the death of him. Luckily, he only ever planned on having one child. One was more than enough for anyone when it came to kids.

Antonio sat back then and took a book to read, snuggling under his covers. He had gotten through a few chapters before he glanced at the bedside clock and noticed that Nicky had been in the bathroom for quite some time. He sighed and closed his book, getting up and heading to the bathroom. How much water did the kid need? He was only 40 pounds or so. Small and agile. He would be tall and thin when he grew up unlike Antonio, who was short, but stacked with muscle.

Antonio opened the door to see Nicky bent over the sink, gulping water. He had shed his pyjamas which lay on the bathroom floor and was completely naked. Antonio raised an eyebrow at this. Ok, this was new. He looked at the boy's stomach then and saw it looked as if it was fit to burst. No wonder, the kid had pumped more water into his body than he weighed. Upon hearing his father enter, Nicky turned off the taps and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. He then grinned and hopped down from the stool they had there for him to reach the sink.

"Catch me," he grinned and sailed past before Antonio could do anything about it. Water sloshing around in his poor over rot stomach. Nicky laughed as he raced down the hallway and headed for the stairs still naked. Antonio laughed at this, no longer worried about good parenting, and chased after his son.

"Get back here, scamp," he called, hearing only the boy's laughter in return. Antonio chased his wayward pup down the stairs and towards the kitchen. When did the little boy get to be so fast? Once they hit the kitchen, Nicky raced around the hair pin turn on the corner of the cupboard and island counter on a dime. Children seem to be able to turn on a dime. Antonio raced around it and tried to stop his momentum. Naked Nicky could make the turn. Antonio in wool socks could not. He abruptly slipped and smashed into the counter top, sending the blender and the man to the floor. The blender crashed and shattered and the man crashed as well. Nicky's laughter could be heard throughout the halls now.

Antonio sighed and got up to chase again. He would have some bruises that would heal fast and some bumps and cuts, but nothing more. He had taken worse, much, much worse. Antonio raced after his son out of the kitchen and followed his trail to the front door. Thank goodness they lived in the middle of nowhere or he would be a nearly naked man chasing a butt naked child down the street.

It was only when Antonio finally caught the boy and began tickling him that he noticed they were not alone. Antonio heard a rare laugh and looked over to see his best friend Jeremy just exiting his car. Nicky turned as well and grinned at Jeremy. Both of their faces were flushed with laughter. "I see you have a stray pup," Jeremy said as he hauled his overnight back over his shoulder. Antonio had completely forgotten about Jeremy coming tonight. Oh well, at least the whole pack didn't see this.

"Yes, a stray pup who's going to bed," Antonio grinned and continued to tickle Nicky. Finally, both men walked into the house and after two bathroom breaks for the boy, both men settled into Antonio's bed with Nicky between them.

"Do I want to know what started this?" Jeremy asked. Antonio grinned as he reached down and kissed his son's hair.

"Water," Antonio said. Jeremy raised an eyebrow, but said nothing to this. Antonio snuggled down, keeping an arm of protection and comfort around his son. Yes, one child was more than enough.


End file.
